Les Provinciales, or, The Mystery of Jesuitisme

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London: Printed for R. Royston

Abstract

At the Council of Trent, the Society of Jesus was asked to undertake the impossible task of bringing Protestantism back into the fold of the ‘Mother Church’. The Jesuits actually became an integral part of the Counter Reformation, and in this role, they revitalised Catholicism. With their hard-line approach and relentless suppression of heresy, they stemmed Protestant successes, and were ever ready to combat heresies such as Luther’s ‘faith alone’ (sola fide) doctrine. John Evelyn’s translation of Les Provinciales or, The Mystery of Jesuitisme, written by mathematician Blaise Pascal (1623-1662), contains a superb engraving of Ignatius Loyola (founder of the Society) and four other Jesuits. Pascal was a Jansenist, a movement within the Catholic Church, yet opposed by many in the hierarchy, especially the Jesuits.